You may not know Charlie Munger. He is an American businessman, investor, and philanthropist, and an important personal branding. He is best known for being Warren Buffet‘s partner in Berkshire Hathaway, the company where you concentrate your investments valued today at 700 billion dollars. Charlie just turned 99 and has been Buffet’s partner and traveling companion for several decades. A character of great wisdom and vision, he has always opted for a very discreet and austere role. In one of his few interviews, he highlighted the following 10 KEYS TO SUCCESS IN BUSINESS AND IN LIFE:
- “KNOWING WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW IS MORE USEFUL THAN BEING BRILLIANT.” Munger bets on avoiding doing stupid things before doing very smart things. Many people have problems in life and in business because of bad decisions. And in this sense, he recommends admitting and acknowledging everything you don’t know and eliminating the ego.
- “MOST OF LIFE’S MISTAKES ARE CAUSED BY FORGETTING WHAT ONE IS REALLY TRYING TO DO.“ Munger says that most of us set ourselves goals, and we try to achieve them, but then we get distracted. He says that to achieve something significant you must be very clear about your direction.
- “IMITATING THE HERD WILL GIVE YOU MEDIOCRE RESULTS.” Charlie says that “If you do what everyone else does, you will get the same results.” So, he recommends being bold and going against the grain.
- “TO GET WHAT YOU WANT, YOU HAVE TO DESERVE WHAT YOU WANT.” It’s very difficult to get great results if you don’t deserve them. In this line, Munger affirms that you cannot directly control your results, but you can control your character, your behavior, your work ethic, and your willingness to learn.
- “THE FUNDAMENTAL ALGORITHM OF LIFE: REPEAT WHAT WORKS.” Many times, people tend to overcomplicate success. Munger says that intelligent people listen and learn. And he follows the following rule: when something goes wrong, do it less and when something goes right, do it a lot more.
- “THOSE WHO KEEP LEARNING WILL KEEP GROWING.” Most people stop learning when they finish their studies. Munger is a clear defender of lifelong learning since knowledge is an asset that accumulates over time. He tells Munger that “The more you know, the better you think. And the better you think, the better choices you make and the better consequences you generate.” Therefore, schedule time to study throughout your life.
- “YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE BRILLIANT, JUST A LITTLE WISER THAN AVERAGE, FOR A LONG TIME.” Buffet and Munger always opt for rationality and patience. They are not committed to doing something truly extraordinary, but simply to be above average in a sustainable way over time.
- “THE BEST THING A HUMAN BEING CAN DO IS HELP ANOTHER HUMAN BEING TO KNOW MORE.” Munger says that “the best way to live your life is to serve other people.” He recommends being generous with your ideas and sharing what you know to help other people grow. Besides, nowadays with digital transformation, sharing what you know is easier and more powerful than ever.
- “YOU MUST HAVE FREE TIME ALMOST EVERY DAY TO JUST SIT AND THINK.” We live in a very hectic time where most professionals have frenetic activity. In this fast-paced and stressful environment, Munger recommends having time for yourself and thinking.
- “YOU HAVE TO KNOW THE BIG IDEAS IN THE BIG DISCIPLINES AND USE THEM ROUTINELY.” Munger is committed to general knowledge. He recommends having knowledge of disciplines such as mathematics, physics, biology, philosophy, engineering… He affirms that everything is connected and that having extensive knowledge in very diverse subjects is very useful.
And I finish with a quote from Charlie Munger that I love and summarizes his way of understanding business and life: “You will do much better if you have a passion for something in which you have aptitude. If Warren Buffet had bet on the ballet, nobody would have heard of it”.
